Chapter 41

Qiao Xinyi raised her hand, making a tiny gesture with her fingers, but said, “The plan is for the balcony to be one and a half meters wide. If that’s not possible, shrinking it to one meter is okay too. But if neither works, then the balcony isn’t absolutely necessary.” 

In short, she’d prefer to have it, even if smaller, but if it really can’t be done, then she could do without it. 

“You really are a talent,” Lin Long laughed. She truly was someone who knew how to find loopholes. 

“Since you’ve already drawn the plans, you might as well complete your documents and have Qian Ke help you take the drawings to the leadership for another round of approval. Once they stamp it, you can add it to your files,” Lin Long said. “Both sides of your building face the street and don’t take up anyone else’s space. One and a half meters is fine, I don’t see a big problem.” 

That was why Lin Long said Qiao Xinyi was a talent—someone inexperienced wouldn’t be able to tell whether this was right or wrong. After all, the first floor definitely didn’t exceed the boundaries of her land. 

Qiao Xinyi had thought the same last night: as long as it didn’t encroach on neighbors’ land or affect them, it was fine. 

After putting away the drawings, the three of them went together to pick up Li Jun, then headed to the largest state-run restaurant and reserved a private room. 

Knowing that Qiao Xinyi had quietly bought a small Western-style house and also purchased a large, run-down bungalow, Li Jun was so surprised that he could have fit an egg in his mouth. 

Before the food arrived, he saw Qiao Xinyi take out the drawings and learned she planned to build a five-story rental building. Li Jun’s jaw nearly dropped to the floor. 

Fu Qingshan poured Qiao Xinyi a cup of hot water, his eyes smiling as he watched Qian Ke and the others crowd behind Qiao Xinyi to look at her apartment layouts. 

At this moment, this bald-headed girl was like a shining star, impossible to look away from. 

The thirty-square-meter layout was simple. Qiao Xinyi had been designing it in her head the previous night while waiting for the thief and had clear ideas, so putting it on paper was quick. 

All balconies faced the street; the entrance door was on the left on one side and on the right on the other, ensuring privacy even for neighbors living across from each other. 

Upon entering was the kitchen, which had a window on the wall facing the corridor to provide light and ventilation. 

Past the kitchen was the bathroom, specially designed by Qiao Xinyi for rental units—each unit had its own bathroom. She didn’t like using public restrooms herself, so having a bathroom in the suite was very important for improving living comfort. 

Due to limitations, the bathroom was a “dark bathroom” without a window. 

The balcony connected to the bedroom, providing space for drying clothes and letting the master bedroom be very bright. 

The remaining space was for the living and dining area. 

After finishing the drawings, Qiao Xinyi confidently told the three, “I dare say my design will be very popular.” 

Though compared to twenty-first-century apartments this design had many flaws, considering the current average living conditions, Qiao Xinyi was confident no better layout could be found now. 

“If I were renting a place, having my own bathroom would be a big plus,” Lin Long agreed deeply. 

“My neighborhood has lots of people sharing one public restroom; sometimes you have to wait to use it, and if you get a stomach bug, you have to rush all the way home,” Qian Ke nodded repeatedly. “Sunny days and summer are okay, but winter rain is awful—having a bathroom at home is wonderful.” 

The two of them exchanged complaints and praised Qiao Xinyi’s design highly. 

“I’ll draw the piping and wiring plans later. The construction team can follow those drawings,” Qiao Xinyi said. She had already observed the site the previous day. 

The house was near the street and not far from public toilets, so the hardware conditions were there—just more expensive. 

“Xinyi, if you trust me, I can handle ordering the building materials for you. I can’t promise it will be much cheaper, but it’ll definitely be a bit cheaper than if you did it yourself.” 

Qiao Xinyi wasn’t naive; Lin Long believed she understood the complexities involved. 

“I really have to thank you, Director Lin, for helping me so much!” Qiao Xinyi said in gratitude. Lin Long had taken this task on and truly helped her a lot. 

Qian Ke said he helped her find Director Lin and arrange the construction team, and at that moment, Qiao Xinyi knew Qian Ke meant the same thing. 

Of course, an individual could buy some bricks directly from the brick factory, but getting steel bars and cement wouldn’t be so easy.

“Director Lin, if you ever need my help with anything in the future, don’t hesitate to come to me,” Qiao Xinyi said, knowing she owed Director Lin a big favor—this wasn’t something a single meal could repay.

“Don’t wait until the future. Xinyi, and don’t call me Director Lin—it’s just friends here. Just call me Lin,” Lin Long waved her hand.

“Then I’ll call you Brother Lin.” Since he was a director and older than her, Qiao Xinyi wouldn’t be naive enough to call him by his full name.

“If there’s anything I can help with, Brother Lin, just command me,” Qiao Xinyi said with a sincere smile, “I’d go through fire and water for you without hesitation!”

Her words made Lin Long smile broadly.

What Lin Long wanted Qiao Xinyi to help with wasn’t a big or difficult task. He liked her design skills and had bought two old bungalows that could be demolished and rebuilt. He wanted her to help design them.

He appreciated Qiao Xinyi’s ingenuity, and since she already had drawing and design skills, it saved him from having to go begging the technical department for help.

But he planned to wait another half year, with the earliest start after next spring.

For Qiao Xinyi, this was indeed a small matter, so she readily agreed.

Lin Long thought that although Qiao Xinyi’s analysis was bold, it was hard to find any point to refute. He vaguely felt she might be right—that storefronts would soon be worth more than residences.

At noon, the meal was enjoyable for all. After eating, Fu Qingshan drove Qian Ke and Lin Long back, then took Li Jun to his workplace.

After Li Jun got out, Fu Qingshan asked, “What are your plans this afternoon?”

Qiao Xinyi immediately replied, “I’m going to Li Jun’s house to pick up Qiao Yunbai and Qiao Baihe. I promised them yesterday I’d take them to the zoo this afternoon.”

She was also anxious to know how the morning’s flyer distribution had gone—whether it had the effect she wanted.

On that note, Qiao Xinyi casually asked Fu Qingshan, “Are you coming with us?”

Fu Qingshan nodded and said yes, then immediately turned the car toward the Li family’s home.

On the way back, Qiao Xinyi felt very excited. Sitting in the passenger seat, she placed her hands on her lap, humming a tune, tapping her hands to the rhythm.

After listening for a while, Fu Qingshan spoke.

“If you don’t have enough money to build the house, I can lend you some first.”

Fu Qingshan didn’t beat around the bush; he directly gave her a number. “I’ve saved some money over the years. I keep some aside for emergencies, but I can lend you four thousand yuan.”

At lunch, Fu Qingshan had overheard Qiao Xinyi and Lin Long discussing budgets. According to Qiao Xinyi’s design, building that five-story building would probably cost over five thousand yuan. This price was already a favor from Lin Long, below the market rate.

The tune Qiao Xinyi was humming suddenly stopped. She looked up in shock at Fu Qingshan, who was still driving.

Did he even realize how shocking what he just said was?

His gaze remained on the road ahead, calm and indifferent as if they were still discussing petty expenses.

That was four thousand yuan!

“Fu Qingshan, are you really not afraid I’ll borrow it and never pay you back?”

Before this, Qiao Xinyi had never thought about borrowing money from anyone; she was focused on making money. Building a house required a lot of money, and she never imagined anyone would offer to lend her such a large sum so willingly.